Having just tried the 2011 RRD Obsession kites on Friday and Saturday I though I’d let you know what differences I’d found between these and the 2010 kites. On the Friday I tried the 7.0m with winds gusting 28 knots averaging just over 25, and Saturday the 9m in winds gusting 27 knots averaging 26, later dropping off to around gusts of 18 and average of 15 knots.
The 7m I found to turn just as fast as the 2010, but it had more bar pressure and a feeling of more lift, very stable in the air, and quicker to re-launch, the times that I dropped it. The new bar was fantastic, the only fault, if I could find one, is not have the adjustable stopper as per the previous global bar to stop the kite completely losing power when you let the bar go, some people I’m sure will like this though.
The 9m I found to be slightly less quick in turning, but it again had more bar pressure and feeling of lift than the 2010 obsession, when the winds dropped a little… more like the conditions that I would normal take it out (15 to 20 knots) it was fantastic, great unhooked, never giving me the impression it was going to fall out of the sky, and re-launching was a dream, even in waves. I would recommend trying or even better buying these kites.
Emile: I always air on the side of scepticism when new technologies appear that are ‘guaranteed’ to improve your sailing. I have to admit to hanging on to a single fin Fanatic while everyone around me was buying new multi-finned offerings just because I felt that it suited the way I sailed (mainly jumping) a lot better.
This week, I tried the new RRD Wave Cult Quads and I have to say that I am very very impressed.
Jumping on, the first thing I noticed is a surprisingly sure-footed feeling as the board accelerates onto the plane. They don’t feel skatey, like the twin fins or some monoconcave single fins do. The boards are maybe ever so slightly slower to get going than an early planing single fin, but not annoyingly so.
Once up and going, they feel incredibly smooth and the nose seems to sit fairly low in the water. This was especially noticeable because I had been overpowered and spinning out a lot on a single fin just before and the 75 that I jumped straight onto (with the same sail) was suddenly easily controllable and very composed in the water.
The sure footed feeling seems very useful when boosting airs and backlooping (my personal obsession). You can setup to jump exactly when and where you want to – easily absorbing the waves that you don’t want to jump off without any fear of spin out (there is nothing more annoying than spinning out into a perfect, steep ramp!)
In the gybe, the rail seems to have an endless bite and drive that you can set as tight as you like and still plane out! (very impressive)
On the way in, I found once on a wave, you can point stupidly high upwind and still keep going – useful in strong tides. The bottom turn, like the gybe is full of bite and drive and you can alter it as needed to make sure you hit where you want to… The top turn is really where the magic happens. Out with the slide and in with the gouge is what I say! The tail no longer seems to break free like a twinser or a stubby waveboard, it just hooks in and throws spray, much to my delight!
Another very useful feature is that you only seem to need a few inches of water in which to gybe the board on the inside!
I tried the 75 and 83. They both feel fairly similar. The 83 does give you that extra bit of float for gusty wind or heavier sailors and possibly gets going slightly earlier than the 75. The 75 feels like it is impossible to be overpowered and I can’t see many people needing smaller!
So there you are, I am very impressed! I must point out that I am not sponsored to have this opinion, I am just stoked on windsurfing like a little boy again!
The board are generally a lot less voluminous than you might be used to but they have been shaped carefully so as not to give up any stability.
The favourite at the beach seems to be the Surf Series but I am pretty sure that the 7’8 Fish would work really well in the mushy waves that we know and love.
I never thought I would be recommending a 7ft 8 paddleboard! For more information, give us a call or grab Simon at the beach.
Simon Bassett and Paul Burgess checked out the Surftech 12’6 Bark Competitor (12’6 x 29″) and Surftech Mitcho (12’6×27″). Here is what they thought:
Simon:
The 12’6 Bark would be my preferred choice of the two boards as it sits closer to the bark 14 ft expedition that I use and did the channel crossing on earlier in the year. I think if you want a board to race in stock class events that is going to be competitive in flat, choppy and open ocean conditions its going to be hard to beat. Personally I not sure if want a collection of distance boards – I think I need a bigger garage! To have a flat water board, a down winder and sprint model is very expensive. The Bark 12’6 I think will fit well into all three categories and sit on a van or car without to much overhang.
I noticed straight away was it was very comfortable to ride and had real nice glidey feel when you paddled hard –stable in the turns and would cut through chop with its vee shaped nose. Although we didn’t get chance to use it in rough water, I am certain it would handle some waves well if you had to come in through surf as it still has a surf board feel about it and flatter hull section at the tail .I think this will make a perfect choice for for all weather distance board and still be very fast in competition.
As you would expect from surftech the boards and made extremely well and feel very light with a price tag of £999.00
The 12’6 Mitcho: you have take a serious look at anything with Jamie Mitchell’s name on it – its a lightweight performance machine which has a completely different feel to the bark 12.6. As soon as you get on it it feels more unstable and definitely requires better technique to balance. The board has a very corky feel. The Mitcho feels like a board you have to work at to get the best out of. There is no question that this board is very fast and it in flat-water conditions it is amazing. In rougher water, you will need more technique to get the most out of the mitcho 12’6. Underneath the hull there is a lot of concave with a chimed rail (this will allow some railing to go on to reduce the hull’s wetted surface to increase speed and control. The blue camo graphics are pimp, it comes with a well balanced handle, good deck pad and epoxy fin .The mitcho costs £999.00
Paul: Surftech 12-6 Mitcho
A specialist 12 ft 6” race machine (250 L volume) for dedicated racers in most conditions or light-weight riders in flat water. Light and good-looking, with a comfortable and grippy deck pad. Accelerates fast for sprinting, very easy to turn, yet good tracking. Fairly narrow width (27”) makes for easy strokes and a good technical style for the proficient. A proven race design in the States, it has been used to devastating effect by some of the best SUP sprinters in the world. Probably not the first choice for a beginner, unless you have good balance and intend to paddle on flat or protected waters (e.g. rivers, canals, estuaries etc). But if you are a competent racer looking for that edge, this board may give it to you, in a practical, durable, and good-looking package. Light-weight and/or smaller casual riders may also find the sleek design more easy to handle – although it is 250 litres in volume, this is “hidden” within the design, and to look at, and when carrying and moving the board around it feels like less.
Surftech Bark Competitor 12 ft 6” Originally designed for sprint racing in and out of the surf, this board has turned out to be much more versatile than just that. It is wider than many race/distance boards (29”) and, combined with the squared-off tail and generous volume of the rails, this gives it good stability. This is a race-proven design, but one which may also suit the more casual user who wants a board with better distance capability than a surf-oriented SUP, but doesn’t want the hassle of a longer and heavier board. Light for a non-carbon board of this volume (233 L), and built to a high standard of finish. It also has an extremely comfortable flat deck pad for standing, which will be very handy over longer distances (although of course there may be a slight compromise on grip in extreme conditions and extreme racing moves). Very manoeuvrable, and surprisingly user-friendly for a design with this race pedigree, the looks and finish are excellent too. An extremely popular choice for those seeking a 12-6 (stock class) distance or race board with more everyday-usability than some. As soon as I tried it was obvious why it has been so popular – it makes speedy sprinting easy, but will be comfortable for longer trips around the coast or inland waters as well.
Jon had some really interesting comments to make about the two different boards – in particular he really stressed the importance of the shape rather than the amount of fins in the board – so however many fins the way the board is shaped and the rocker line will still make the biggest difference as to how the board will perform.
Jon who has been heavily involved in the development of these boards explained that he tends to use the Cult 75 as his all round board in most locations and recommended this board for most sailors on the UK coastline. He felt the Cult 75 and 83 are modelled on similar rocker lines to the 82 Twin Fin and have the added advantage of the 4 fin set up which increases the turning performance and grip of the board.
The real benefits of the Quad over the Twin are the board grip in the top turns and the extra drive/speed in bottom turns; real positive feel when you take off jumping and extra control when you are seriously overpowered.
With regards to fin set up on the Quad – Jon’s set up was 33cm from the tail of the board to the leading edge of the fin and then the side fins are either 2 or 3 finger spacing forward of that. The further forward you put your side fins the more control over the board you will have in turns.
Jon also explained that the Hardcore range of boards has more rocker in it and sits deeper in the water so is slightly harder to get up onto the plane and requires bigger, cleaner waves to get the most out of this board.
With regards to the new 2011 Single Fin board – with RRD, these are the same shape but just with a single fin option – it depends on whether you are after that “drivey feel” which handles flat, chop, waves without any problems or if you are looking for something which is more biased towards wave riding in the UK, then the Cult Quad is your option!
Emile: I tried this in the week. I have to admit to being sceptical at first. I was, however, hugely impressed.
Sailing out, the board seems to grip a lot more than modern mono-concave singles or twin fins and I was getting a lot more floaty airs than I normally do (on a 5.3, fairly well-powered). It seemed to cut into wind on take-off a lot better than other boards I have tried, making it ideal for rocket airs or backloops in onshore conditions!
The board is slightly later to plane than my New Wave single fin but not annoyingly so and it was getting going fine in the marginal wind that I started my session in. I found that this was remedied by pointing slightly deeper downwind than normal to unstick it. Once going, it sailed through the lulls very well and was really happy popping over the messy stuff.
On the way in, it is very playful and definitely loves full rail carves more than the back foot twin fin style. The waves were not great by any stretch of the imagination but I did have a few magic moments getting the odd nice smack.
I am really looking forward to checking out the RRD quads to see how they compare. However, on the back of that session, I am DEFINITELY buying a quad this year!
If you want to try the Fanatic this weekend, and I highly recommend you do, be sure to give Chris or Roscoe a call on 01243 513077
JEM: Psc, baja all good and just sailed my quad 92 for first proper time and it was really damn good, i am very happy. Was full power 5.5 and then gusty 5.0 with some chest high sets coming in.
FEEDBACK SO FAR Felt quick to plane, very controllable and good speed, went upwind very high. Easy to sail and secure through the gybe and you could really drive hard in the exit, more like a single fin.
In riding it was pretty loose, still working on the riding, but it good grip and drive through the turns.
Jumps were good too, off small chop and waves and it rotated well through forwards, with a short and compact feel to the board.
Tacks were also very stable.
COMPARISON All in all it feels bigger and easier than the twin 90 so far.
COMING UP NEXT I will play around with fins and other things and give you more feedback when we get bigger waves and i m more tuned into the riding.
For 2011, RRD have released a fine selection of waveboards.
There are 2 styles of board, available in both quad fin and single fin constuctions.
The Wave Cult LTD is once again the more alround waveboard – 75, 83 or 92 litres (single or quad).
The Hardcore Wave is more of an out-and-out hardcore waveboard this year and best suited to advanced riders in strong winds and/or big waves. It is available in 68, 76 or 64 (single or quad).
We will very shortly have some demo boards at the beach. To come and try one, call 01243 513 077
Roberto Ricci:
The new Wave Cult V4 is a completely re-designed shape. Sharp, fast, instinctive and loose these boards will never let you down when the wind will be gusty or the waves will be mushy yet they will still excel in pumping conditions. The highly acclaimed wave cult has the widest range of use in the RRD wave board collection, whilst the single fin configuration allows you to maximize speed, grip and control from side off to onshore winds.
The shape features: Vee throughout most of the length and a slight double concave in the mid hull section to improve stability. A Max width point about 10 cms forward with a wider nose, which allows a very balanced and proportional outline and keeps a constant curve all the way to the very end of the board.
A full rail shape and generous tucked rails in the front allowed RRD to create fast yet turny wave boards that will be in perfect control in both rough waters or marginal conditions.
The sizes are 75 litres / 56cms, 83 / 58cm and 92 / 60cms, with MFC fins of 22, 23 and 24cms respectively
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